The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1887-11-30
IN A BIG BAKERY.
AN INoUIsITIvE REPORTER SPENDS
ANlGHT WITH THE PROPRIETOR.
A Crowd Of Men, Women and Children
I'm Front Of New York Bread Making
Tstablishment-Manu and Dis
tributlon--spouge, Dough ana flour

disorderly crowd OF men, women ano
children svaved IN front OF bakery on
Fast Seyenty.ffth street the other after
noon Nearly all carried covered baskets
ON their arms. Occasionally little TEL
low received blow over the head from
basket for crowdinQ some one older thah
himself
When questioned concerning the cause
Of the excitement the proprietor said: I'VE
supply almost every restaurant IN the city
with fresh baked bread. All that IS left
over from the preceding day we take back
and give a fresh loaf in exchange. When
il is returned 10 the bakery we sell IL 70
these poor people at three cents loaf. IL
X real.v more wholesome than when fresh
from the oven and sold at eight cents a
Loaf The stale bread is always in de-
mand. and we sometimes see lively scenes
around here when the supply is short ~
The proprietor then invited the reporter
10 spend a night with him in the bakery.
He led the way through aisles Of loaf bread
piled six feet high. There were an KINDS
of bread in these piles, from the long Vi
emma and long French baseball bats to the
chubby loaf OF rye.
we make thirty.two different kinds
and STYLES of bread, and ten different
STYLES of rolls" said he They are baked
In six huge ovens, having a capacity Of
10 600 loaves an hour. Our reel oven Is
the largest and only one Of its kind IN the
country. II is two stories high and about
thirty feet square II contains a large
turbine wheel, on which the kneaded
dough IS placed As the wheel revolves
the bread remains upright. Twelve hun
dred loaves are baked i'm this huge oven
every forty five minutes
In the basement of the bakery clouds OF
-four dust nearly choked the spectator.
The forms Of busy men, arrayed in white,
could be seen through it. over The long
trouahs the wOrkmcn we're leaning dash
ing the -four TO and fro, and mixing the
dry with the wet -four until all IN the
trough was pure dough. CaldrOns OF Ter
mcnt stood ready 20 make stock yeast
Sponge into dough was converted and the
loal was ready 10 bake.
After being baked the loayes were piled
I'm such "a manner that they could be easily
counted by two men who began work at
3D. m. and worked an night These men
mi the orders Of the drivers, who deliver
10 the customers early I'm the morning
ALL d. m the men were re enforced
bv ten more bakers The rapidity with
which Hour was changed into dough was
surprising Barrel after barrel WAS turned
into the long tr0ughs and quickly handed
over % the men at the oven, who took
charge of it until lt was ready for baking
Each Of the forty men I'm the establish
ment works eleven hours only some
work during the day one week and at
night the following week. Bench men
are paid Sl4 per week and oven men $ll
Der week The place is never idle and
the fires are never drawn. Nothing short
of 900 earthquake could check the current
OF the staff OF life which flows from the
bakery.
About forty-hye barrels OF -four are
used daily. The empty barrels are headed
up and sold TO coopers for 20 cents apiece.
cover 9. 500 loayes OF rye bread day
are baked here" said the proprietor. 'lt
took two years OF experimenting 20 pro
duce the right favored rye bread, but to-
day we make the handsOmest fifteen inch,
two pound loaf YOU ever laid your eyes
upon.
DO you supply families" asked the
writer
"Not directly was tho reply. "Fami-
lies now buy their bread from grocery
stores. and we supply the grocer There
ia mo- money supplying families direct, and
tine bakers who have tried IL have failed.
Our wagons carry from 800 10 500 loayes
q trip, which they deliver inside OF two
hours IL would take q day and a half TO
deliver that number at private houses.
What is your head yeast OF fermentF'
asked the writer.
"Head Yeast is the source from which
ferment is obtained for making stock
Yeast The ingredients Of head yeast are
hons and malt and water and flour. These
are the only ingredients we use, although
some use porter and sugar instead OF malt.
Great care is taken IN the making Of yeast,
and none but the oldest and best glutin-
ON. -four ought 90 be used. Weak -four
would produce feeble yeast, and unsatis-
factory bread would be the result.
stock Yeast is so called, 80 he continued,
"because il is the stock or supply Of yeast
used In making the sponge IL IS simply
n continuation of the ferment Potato fer
meut is also used by Us. It's ingredients
are lour. water, head yeast and potatoes.
The bread made with IL viii not dry out
as quickly as bread made with yeast.
Bread ordinarily weighs lye-sixteenths
heavier than the -four II contains, the ex-
cess being water.
The sponge is a mixture Of flour,
water and Il fermeuting substance Of some
kind When mixed with the dough 10
fermcnts the entire mass, rendering It
porous, spongy and elastic. Sponge is
also made To test the fermentlng quality
ofthe yeast without using all the flour. To
make the dough you work hesponge with
such quantities OF -four, water and salt as
will give the proper consistency 10 the
baked bread Ii the dough is TOO thin the
gas will escape too rapidly the raising
will subside too early and the bread viii
be damp, heavy and sour TO taste and
smell II the dough Is TOO dry-tAat IL,
Il too little water has been used-the fer
mediation will be slow. II too slow It
may turn sour.
livery kind Of -four requires treat
mcnt peculiar 20 itself 20 give the best re-
suits We often waste large quantities Of
Il In expcrimeuting The very best quail
ties OF flour often fail TO make good bread
when iusuniclently kneaded, because Che